What I learned from reading Churchill by Paul Johnson.
In his 90 years, Churchill spent 55 as a member of parliament, 31 years as a minister and nearly nine years as prime minister.
He had been present at or fought in 15 battles, and he's been awarded 14 campaign medals.
He had been a prominent figure in the First World War and a dominant one in the second.
He had published nearly 10 million words, more than professional writers in their lifetime, and painted over 500 canvases, more than most professional painters.
He was a fellow of the Royal Society, a university chancellor, and won a Nobel Prize.
Scores of towns made him an honorary citizen.
Dozens of universities awarded him honorary degrees, and 13 countries gave him a medal.
How many bottles of champagne he consumed is not recorded, but it may be close to 20,000.
He had a large and much loved family and countless friends.
So Winston Churchill led a full life, and few people are ever likely to equal it, its amplitude, variety and success on so many fronts.
But all can learn from it, especially in five ways.
The first lesson is always aim high.
As a child, Churchill received no positive encouragement from his father and little from his mother.
He was aware of his failure at school, but he still aimed high.
Conscious of his ignorance, he set himself to master english history and to familiarize himself with great chunks of literature.
Once his own master, he played to win the top award in the world.
Lesson number two is there's no substitute for hard work.
The balance he maintained between flat out work and creative and restorative leisure is worth study by anyone that's holding a top position.
He never evaded hard work itself, taking important and dangerous decisions in the course of a 16 hours day.
No one ever worked harder than Churchill to make himself a master orator.